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SpartanMazdapedia Wiki:Disambiguation
On SpartanMazdapedia Wiki, disambiguation is a tool for resolving conflicts with similar page names. With five ''Elder Scrolls'' titles to date, and several expansions, there are bound to be instances where names of characters, places, and items are re-used. Disambiguation helps readers and editors find the page they're looking for, without causing confusion. Fundamentals There are three fundamental principles that disambiguation is founded upon *Titling articles so that each name is different. For instance Items (Daggerfall) versus Items (Skyrim). *Linking to the proper page is key to avoiding ambiguity conflicts. For instance, a link to Items points to a disambiguation, when perhaps the original creator of the page intended for the article to contain only [[Items (Skyrim)|Items in Skyrim]]. *Allowing readers to find the information they're looking for in either this wiki's search engine, or search engines such as Google or Yahoo!. For instance, a reader might type Items into the search engine, not knowing that an article on this topic exists for each game. The reader will be directed toward Items, where they can select from a list of articles containing that general name. General article guidelines Alteration, technically, is a disambiguation page, although it contains cursory information on the Magical discipline itself. These articles articles are known as soft disambiguations or soft disambigs for short. In some instances, it may be desirable to create a disambiguation page that expresses the general principles of the topic, while serving as a directory to more specific articles on a topic. Using the example of Alteration, general information is provided at the disambiguation to avoid repeating information that would otherwise be redundant in each, game-specific article on Alteration. Additionally, such articles open the possibility of cross-game analysis. This way, in Alteration (Oblivion) or Alteration (Skyrim), we can shift the main focus on the unique spells and game machines in the game-specific articles. On the Alteration page, we can discuss which games the magic school appears in, what types of spells it governs, over-arching lore, philosophy, and theory on the topic, as well as an analysis of how the school is similar or different across each title. Specific article guidelines Unlike the above example, there are instances when two topics are totally unrelated, yet contain the same name. For instance, Karita. In Skyrim, there are two female NPCs with exactly the same name, but are otherwise completely separate, unrelated individuals. In this instance, creating a link directory at Karita is advantageous. Setting up a disambiguation Before setting up a disambiguation, make sure there are at least three links that contain the same name. Disambiguations that only link to two other articles with a similar name are liable for deletion or replacement of one of the disambiguated pages. Format Here's a preview of how a basic disambiguation page should be formatted: may refer to: *Conjuration (Morrowind) *Conjuration (Oblivion) *Conjuration (Skyrim) Categorization Adding the template automatically adds a disambiguation page to a category of all such pages. Other than this, no other categories should exist on the page. Fixing links To evade disambiguation pages To ensure that when a reader clicks a link, they are directed to the exact page they would be looking for, add piped links when a linked-to page is a disambiguation. For instance: Fire Damage This will lead to a disambiguation page. But if this link appears in Flame Cloak, a Skyrim specific spell, a reader clicking on this link assumes the information on the other end is also related to Skyrim, so we would want to link to Fire Damage this way instead: Fire Damage If an article links to a disambiguation page, it may be prudent to back track and fix the link so that it directs to the most logically unambiguous page. One can also use pipe tricks for a shorthand method of fixing such links: Fire Damage (Skyrim) This method, however, does not work in galleries, references, and some templates. ja:The Elder Scrolls Wiki:曖昧さ回避 Category:Help Pages Category:TESWiki